


A Grecian Artifact

by Clunk59



Category: Warehouse 13
Genre: M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:28:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25734346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Clunk59/pseuds/Clunk59
Summary: An artifact has been detected overseas. Pete and Steve are heading out to find it, but how is Steve going to handle being with Pete?
Relationships: Steve Jinks/Pete Lattimer
Comments: 6
Kudos: 15





	1. Chapter 1

Steve woke up to the smell of pancakes. Leena was getting an early start to the day, which meant Artie was probably on his way over with a case. He sighed, closed his eyes again, squeezed them tight and then opened, and then reluctantly moved his legs off the side of the bed and sat up. He closed his eyes again and rubbed them. Time for a shower.

He could hear Myka moving around in her room, and the faint traces of steam coming out of the shared bathroom meant she had already showered. Knowing Myka, she already had her entire day laid out. Him and Pete just could not function like that, but he figured he was better off than Pete. There were no signs of life coming from the other’s room at the end of the hall.

Waiting for the water to heat up again only took a minute, but Steve found himself staring into the mirror for longer. His eyes barely registered anything in the reflection but themselves, looking back at each other, asking the question he asked himself every day. He already knew the answer. No, he would not act on his feelings he had for Pete.

Pete, by all accounts, was the very definition of heterosexual, and was clearly very comfortable in his sexuality. He had dated Kelly for god’s sake. But Steve couldn’t help but linger on one thing. When Pete offered to take his shirt off for Steve to look at anytime he wanted, he wasn’t lying.

Steve closed his eyes and shook his head, breaking the spell. You need to stop dwelling, he said to himself. It’s not going to happen. Move on.

He showered, and walked back down the hall to his room. He could hear Myka downstairs talking to Artie, who must have arrived while he was showering.

“Since there’s only one artifact, I was hoping I could take the day off? I just had some things I need to get done. I need to run to the hardware store, and I have a package to mail to my dad. Last mission in France I found a copy of Les Misérables I _know_ he doesn’t have.” Typical Myka.

“What do you mean, you ‘ _know_ ’ he doesn’t have it?” Artie’s voice was low, and Steve knew exactly the face he was making. Well, not necessarily the whole face. He knew exactly what Artie’s eyebrows looked like at this moment. “Is it just rare, or does it belong in the warehouse? Because I know Victor Hugo, and if that book is even artifact _adjacent_ then we need to…” Steve shut the door to his room, missing the last part of the sentence. Or not even necessarily last, knowing Artie that was probably just the beginning of a sentence, beginning an entire lecture. He smirked to no one, just glad he wasn’t on the receiving end.

He fumbled through his dresser, grabbing clothes. As he dropped his towel, the door busted open.

“Jinksy, Artie’s ready to debrief!” Pete’s mouth shut and turned into a massive grin as Steve snatched the towel off the floor and held it in front of him, “But it looks like you’ve already been debriefed”

“Oh ha-ha” Steve replied, “Listen, it’s too early for puns. Just. Get out. I’ll be ready in a minute.”

Pete’s face suddenly turned serious, “Steve, it is never, ever, too early for puns.” He smile again, then backed out and shut the door. Steve let out a breath of relief, and put the towel back down. He got dressed quickly and headed downstairs to meet the others.

“And that is why the original copy of Les Misérables is locked away in the Warehouse.” It seemed Artie had just finished up the lecture. Myka, as always, looked genuinely interested, while Pete was stuffing a bite of pancake in his mouth, clearly before he had even finished the first one.

“As far as I know Artie, it’s not, but I’ve been proven wrong before.” Myka replied. She saw Steve coming and smiled. “Morning!”

Pete looked up too, and said something that could have been “Good Morning” but sounded more like “gmm mnnoohhng” and winked. Pete hadn’t even tried to get ready for the day, in fleece pajama bottoms and t-shirt, and his hair a mess. That almost made it worse. Steve could feel all the blood in his body rushing to his head, and he urged it to stay away. Just a glimpse of his reflection in the glass of a china cabinet showed he wasn’t even near successful.

“Here’s some pancakes, Steve!” And there was Leena, swooping in the save the day like always.

“They look delicious Leena, thanks.” Steve took the plate and sat down quickly, trying to hide his face, which he knew was beet red.

“Steve, what’s wrong? Your aura is a little off today.” Okay, maybe Leena wasn’t saving the day.

“Nothing!” He winced after saying it. He realized too late that it was a little too quick and a little too loud. “I had some bad dreams last night, maybe that’s it?” Leena smiled, clearly satisfied with his answer, and walked back to the kitchen.

Artie cleared his throat. “Who wants to go to Greece?” He looked around at the three agents. Pete was adding more pancake to his already full mouth with one hand, while raising the other. Artie looked over his glasses at Myka. “I don’t want to send all three of you, but I do want you guys to go in a pair.”

“Like I said, I have a couple things I need to get done,” Myka said.

Pete swallowed his pancakes, began to choke, and started sputtering into a glass of milk. Once he recovered he looked at Myka. “Awww, Mykes, but I want to go to Italy.”

“You’re thinking of Rome, Pete.”

“Same thing!”

“Nope, they are separated by a sea.”

“Are you sure?”

“What about you Steve?” Artie said, looking over his glasses at him, interrupting Pete and Myka’s bickering. “I know you normally go out in the field with Claudia, but since she’s visiting Joshua, we’d have to mix things up.”

“Yeah, I’ll go to Greece,” Steve said.

“Even though you’ll be stuck with the child over there?” Myka gestured towards Pete, who put on a wide grin, showing pancake still stuck in his teeth. On anyone else, Steve would find that annoying, but with Pete, well, it was Pete.

“I’ll find a way to manage,” he found himself saying. “Maybe I can put him on a leash, all the cool parents are doing it these days.” Myka and Pete both laughed, Pete sarcastically, while Artie ignored everything that was happening.

“Okay, then it’s decided, Pete and Steve will go to Greece.” Artie opened up the folder in front of him.

“Yeah, boy’s trip, woo-hoo!” Pete stood up and reached over the table to give Steve a high five. Even with just that instant of hand contact, Steve could feel his stomach start to spin. “So what’s up Artie, what are we looking for across the ol’ pond?”

“I’m not really, sure, the fish got a ping from Patras, one of the cities over there. There’s been a string of deaths with unusual circumstances. Several people have been found dead of dehydration, in their own homes, with readily available water. Except for the first recorded death, Marilyn Hannah, an American tourist, who was found dead in her hotel room, but still from dehydration, with the water at the hotel functioning perfectly”

“Ahhh, so we’re looking for some sort of desert artifact,” Pete said, putting on a detective’s voice.

“That’s for you to find out, over there. With the death of an American tourist, you should be able to work with the local police. Here, take this file, your flight leaves in 2 hours.” Artie grabbed his briefcase and walked out, yelling over his shoulder, “Leena, you know I’m on a diet!”

Steve started to dig in to his pancakes, but he could feel Pete looking at him instead of the file. At least, he thought he felt it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've never in my 26 years of life written or even READ fanfic, but last night I suddenly felt the urge to read some Pete/Steve, but I only found a couple I liked. So I decided to start writing my own! I hope you like it!!


	2. Chapter 2

Their transit had one layover on the eastern coast, luckily only an hour. Steve sat next to their gate, while Pete wandered off in the general direction of the food court. Steve started to read the file Artie had given them. Hannah, 31, was found in her hotel room in the bed. The report stated that she died from dehydration, and had soiled herself several times. The body had been found by a hotel housekeeper, whose screams brought others running. The report had a few pictures of the scene, with Hannah laying on the bed, an arm outstretched in front of her. Strange.

The next victim was one of the employees at the hotel, a different housekeeper than the one who had found Hannah. Chloe Drako, 42, was found by her daughter who had come to visit, as she did most weekends since Chloe’s husband died in a car accident. When she walked in, her mother was sitting at the kitchen table. It was the same as with Hannah, dehydration was listed as the cause of death. A picture showed the deceased sitting at the table. Wait. Steve looked closer. Her arm was outstretched as well. What did it mean?

His thoughts were interrupted by a massive baked good being shoved in front of his face. He looked up to see Pete grinning like a maniac.

“I got you a Cinnabon,” Pete said in a singsong voice, still smiling wide.

Steve set the file on his lap and took the cardboard boat the cinnamon bun was sitting in. “Is there a small African village around? I think we could feed them too.”

“Hey, I’ll gladly take whatever you don’t finish,” Pete said, digging into his.

Steve took a bite. The warm bun and icing practically melted in his mouth. “Thanks Pete, I appreciate this,” he said, and dug in for another bite.

“So what did you find out so far?” Pete asked, gesturing towards the folder on Steve’s lap.

“Not much so far. I haven’t looked at the third victim yet, but the first two died of dehydration, like Artie said. But they also had both soiled themselves multiple times.”

“Ew.” Pete looked down at his Cinnabon, shrugged, and took another bite. “So what does it mean? They couldn’t access the sink _or_ the bathroom?”

“I don’t know,” Steve said, distracted. He was watching Pete eat his cinnamon bun intently. Some icing had gotten on the top of Pete’s lip, and Pete had stuck his tongue out and up to try to get it. Steve watched Pete’s tongue working, and felt his stomach start to do rollercoasters again. That motion... No. He shook his head and looked back down at his own cinnamon bun.

“Do we know how this affected both of them? Were they in contact?” Pete apparently hadn’t noticed Steve staring, too intent on eating his own bun.

“The second worked at the hotel the first was found at, but other than that, I’m not sure.”

“We’ll have to ask around when we get there. Hopefully whatever this artifact is, it isn’t contagious.”

The two sat in silence for a time, so Steve started watching the people around him. There were quite a few young couples. A couple sitting near them were both asleep, the woman laying her head on the man’s shoulder. Pete has shoulders, Steve thought, and then immediately laughed out loud at the absolute ridiculousness of the thought. Pete looked at him, questioning, but Steve just shook his head, still amused.

After the cinnamon buns were eaten, it wasn’t long before it was time to board. Pete and Steve were next to each other again on this flight. Steve felt that the seats were somehow even closer together on this flight, making avoiding contact with Pete nearly impossible. Steve started to scroll through the entertainment screen in front of him, trying to decide which movie to watch, something, anything to focus on other than the man sitting beside him.

Pete somehow managed to sleep a good chunk of the plane ride over the water, Steve sitting beside him, acutely aware of how close they were in the cramped commercial seating. A shock went through him every time their elbows touched. He kept adjusting his position in his chair, which would cause him to touch Pete’s feet with his and, occasionally, his knee to his, at which point Steve would jerk away, terrified of what Pete would think of this contact.

Steve took the time to look over the case file again. The third victim was in fact the neighbor of Chloe, the second victim. Neighbor? Maybe it _was_ contagious. Aikaterini Georgiou, 56, found when she hadn’t come into work for a few days. Her boss had called emergency services, and the ambulance that arrived found her door unlocked and Mrs. Georgiou in her bedroom. She lived alone after a bad divorce, with no children or other family nearby. Same circumstances around the death, and the same outstretched arm. What did it mean? Steve mused over it for a while, and eventually fell asleep.

When he woke up Pete was awake, and there were still 3 hours left in the flight. Pete had his headphones on, having somehow found a western on the tiny movie screen in front of him. Steve put his own headphones on and started scrolling through the options again. He found himself in the romcom section of the movies. He started one with the actress he liked and a decent looking actor, wanting something to just keep his mind busy. He certainly didn’t intend to get as invested as he did. When the movie hit the climax, and the main characters kissed, Steve was surprised to find tears streaming down his cheeks and thoughts of love screaming through his head.

Why couldn’t he find anyone? Why did he feel so alone, all the time? He knew that he wasn’t really alone, with Claudia and Myka, Pete, hell, even Artie was family to him. But he still had an ache for something that was so horrifically human. He wanted someone to hold, someone he could watch this movie with, someone that would be there when he woke up from nightmares of his death. But he knew why he couldn’t find anyone. Because he was looking for a very specific person, someone that wouldn’t pop up no matter how many apps he downloaded, someone he already knew, and he knew he wouldn’t find another. He was looking for Pete.

A touch on his arm removed him so abruptly from these thoughts that his vision spun. He whipped his head to the side, ripping off his headphones, to see Pete grabbing his forearm.

“Steve, man, are you okay?” There was so much concern in his voice and his face that Steve felt a rush of guilt for something he didn’t need to feel sorry for.

“Yeah, it’s just…this movie.” Steve gestured to the screen. “It just always gets me, you know? It must be the whole gay thing, I’m just a romantic.”

“I got you Jinksy, living with Myka has prepared me for situations just like this.” Pete reached up and started pressing the assistance button over and over, until a slightly annoyed flight attendant made her way over. “We’re going to need a tub of chocolate ice cream here, stat.” Pete said, putting on a serious voice again.

The flight attendant looked at Pete, then at Steve, then back to Pete. “That isn’t a product we carry on this particular plane. I can bring by the drinks cart if you two would like?”

“No, no, that’s not necessary,” Steve said quickly, shooting a glance at Pete.

“Steve, if you want to drink, it’s fine, I’ll be fine,” Pete said.

“No, it’s really okay.” Steve looked back to the flight attendant. “Really, we’re find here.” The attendant walked away, decidedly more annoyed than she had been before she had come over.

“Well, is there anything I can do?” Pete still looked concerned for Steve.

“No, I think I just need to put on something different. Something funnier.”

The two sat in silence for a time, though Steve could see Pete stealing glances out of the corner of his eye. The quiet lasted until the plane began its descent, and Pete leaned over to look out of his window.

“Steve, you’ve gotta see this!” Pete said excitedly, leaning back to allow Steve to lean over. The city looked beautiful from above, with modern buildings built between a network of red rooftops. While the buildings themselves weren’t visible, Steve figured most of them would be older stone. He could see the Parthenon from above, a rectangle of white. Pete moved beside him to look out again too, and placed a hand on Steve’s shoulder. Steve recoiled instinctively.

“Sorry Jinksy, I didn’t mean to startle you. You can still look out if you want,” Pete said, obviously confused by Steve’s reaction.

“No, it’s fine, I saw it, and we’ll see it closer when we land,” Steve said, settling back into his seat, “Besides, the fasten seat belt light is on.”

They didn’t say much the rest of the flight, until finally they disembarked the plane, and left the terminal. They waited briefly for the bus that would take them to Patras, and in that time Pete traded in some cash for euros. The bus finally came, and for the entire 2 hour ride Pete was like a little kid, insisting on the window seat, wanting to see everything. His excitement was contagious, and Steve found himself looking forward to the case ahead of them.

Finally, the bus arrived in Patras, and the two made their way to the hotel. The same hotel Hannah, the first victim, had been found dead in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen yes I am gay and yes I am currently pining over a straight guy but no that is not manifesting itself in this. At least not by much (it is it really is).


	3. Chapter 3

“ – and here is the key to room 345,” the receptionist finished, handing Pete a keycard.

“Thanks!” Pete took it and put it in his pocket. He leaned in close, over the desk, lowering his voice. “Hey, I uh, I heard someone died in their room the other week. We’re not, you know, in that room, are we?”

The receptionist’s lip curled slightly. “No, sir, you are not.”

“That’s crazy though, right? Do you guys know what happened?”

“I’m sorry, I’m afraid I can’t speak on that.”

“Aw, c’mon, just a little gossip.” Pete put on a charming smile. At least, Steve thought it was charming. The receptionist was not as impressed.

“Philip can take your bags to your room.” He gestured to one of the bellboys, who pulled up a cart and started loading Steve and Pete’s luggage.

Steve turned to receptionist. “Sorry about that, thanks.” The bellboy started to push the cart, and Pete and Steve followed him into the elevator. As soon as the doors closed, the bellboy started switched out of his professional air.

“I was here that day,” he blurted out.

Pete looked at Steve, obviously surprised, and turned back to the bellboy. “Oh yeah? Did you see anything?”

Philip, had the receptionist said? Right, Philip, started nodding enthusiastically. “I had just finished moving someone in down the hall when I heard Maria start to scream. I made sure the family was okay before I went running. By the time I got there, other housekeepers were herding Maria out of the room.” The elevator opened and they stepped out into the hallway.

“Really?” Steve said, “Did one of those housekeepers happen to be Chloe Drako?”

Philip instantly stopped walking and spun around, looking scared. “Who are you guys?”

Pete flashed his badge. “U.S. secret service, we’re looking into the death of the woman from that room. So was my partner here right? Was Chloe one of the housekeepers helping Maria?”

“Ye-yes, she was.” The kid was clearly rattled. “Wait, Chloe passed the other day. If you’re looking into this, do you think that girl was murdered? Do you think _Chloe_ was murdered?”

“Sorry, I’m afraid I can’t speak on that.” He shrugged apologetically. They were at the room. Pete grabbed his luggage and headed in.

Steve stopped. He suddenly realized what was happening. Two of them, one room. But how many beds? What was he going to do if there was just one? Would one of them sleep on the floor? Was there a couch? What if…no. yes. What if they slept in the same bed? Him and Pete starting out on opposites sides, but then moving around when they sleep. Closer and closer, until they wake up entwined in the other’s arms. They would look deeply into each other’s eyes, and slowly move in closer until –

“Do I need to be worried? Am I a target?” Steve was snapped out of his thoughts by the bellhop, who sounded worried.

“I don’t know,” Steve said, still distracted. “Have you been feeling thirsty?”

“I don’t think so? I mean, if I work a long time I can chug a water bottle, but I don’t think I’ve been more thirsty than usual? Maybe?” Philip coughed. “Oh god, I’m feeling thirsty now.”

Steve looked at him for a second. He’s probably fine, he thought. He shrugged, grabbed his luggage, and walked into the room. Two beds. He wasn’t sure if he should feel relieved or disappointed. Pete had claimed the bed closest to the door, so Steve was at the window.

“Hey, am I going to be okay?” the bellboy yelled from the doorway.

Pete walked over and handed the kid a few euros. “Go buy yourself a bottle of water,” he said while shutting the door. He turned back to Steve. “We need to talk to this Maria, who found Hannah. But first, I need to shower. You need the bathroom before I do, Jinksy?”

“No, no, I’m good,” Steve replied, “I’ll just. Find something on TV.”

“Cool.” Pete went into the bathroom, and a couple seconds later Steve could hear the water running. He picked up the remote and laid back into his bed. Trying to watch the news proved fruitless, as it was all in Greek, but eventually found a cooking competition he liked that was in English, with Greek subtitles. He tried to focus on it, trying to think of anything other than the fact that Pete was naked just a few feet from him, behind a shut door.

It wasn’t long before this proved as fruitless as channel surfing. Pete came out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel and started digging through his suitcase. Steve could feel all the blood rushing to his face again. At least, most of it was going to his face. He took a quick look over at Pete. His stomach was solid, with abs clearly visible but without the cut definition. A fine layer of hair covered his stomach and chest. A dad bod, it would probably be called, mused Steve. But still, it was clear Pete worked out often. His pecs had a slight bounce when Pete moved his arms. His arms. Those muscles, still glistening from the shower… Steve couldn’t handle it. He brought his hands up to his face and started rubbing his eyes with his palms.

“You okay there Jinksy?” Steve looked up to see Pete drop his towel. He felt his breath catch in his throat. Pete looked down, then back up at Steve. “What?” He laughed, then quickly pulled on a pair of boxers. “Oh, right! Hey, we’re both guys, and to be fair, I saw you before we left.” He winked and laughed again, and started pulling out the rest of his clothes

“No, NO, it’s not that, just got really caught up in this show. You just reminded me that I should shower too.” Steve got up, unzipped his suitcase, grabbed some clothes, and practically ran into the bathroom.

He found himself staring into the mirror again. He was practically begging himself at this point to just let it go. Pete just thought of him as another guy. And he was! Pete was his friend, and he needed to knock it off before he hurt the friendship. The last thing he needed was to break up the team because he couldn’t keep it in his pants. He made sure the shower was freezing before he got in. He needed to calm down.

He dried off and got dressed. When he came out of the bathroom, Pete was thankfully fully dressed, and was sitting reading the case file. And was holding a gyro.

“Where the hell did you get that?” Steve said.

“You left it beside your suitcase, figured I would read over it a bit.” Pete replied, taking a bite out of the gyro.

“Pete, clearly I’m not talking about the case file.”

“Oh this?” Pete asked, smiling wide and holding up the gyro, some juice dripping onto the file. “I was hungry, stepped outside, and followed my nose to a street vendor. He wasn’t lying, this is the best gyro I’ve ever had.” Pete took another massive bite, finishing it off.

Steve couldn’t help but grin. “How do you always do that?” Pete gave another one of his wide smiles, with food in his teeth, just like with the pancakes. Adorable.

“Why don’t we go back down and bug the receptionist again?” Pete suggested, looking up at Steve.

“He wasn’t too cooperative before, what do you think will be different?” Steve asked.

“I’m thinking the bellboy probably went straight back down to spread the word that there are American federal agents asking questions. And I’m planning on just getting the manager, so we can have a word with this Maria.”

“Alright, let’s do this” They headed back down to the lobby, and asked the receptionist for the manager. Pete flashed his badge a little bit more, and soon they were sitting in the manager’s office with Maria, the housekeeper.

“I already told the police this, why are you making me tell you again? Can’t you just ask them?” The woman was clearly still upset.

Steve reached out a hand and laid it on her knee, “I understand this might be difficult, but is there anything you remember? Anything odd?”

“No, nothing! It was a normal tourist room. Suitcase, a couple bottles of water, some fast food, a backpack, normal things.”

“Like a hiker’s backpack?”

“Yes, she was probably hiking. Tourists either visit the cities or the woods, she was probably headed towards any number of forests around here. Dasos Chimarron is near here, it has the river Charadros running through it, popular for tourists near here.”

Pete stepped in. “Okay, but what about in the room. Did you smell fudge?”

She was clearly taken aback, “No? Only smell was the woman.”

“What about on the body? Anything strange? Maybe on her clothing?” Steve asked.

“I don’t know, I was too shocked! I didn’t even get a chance to see what she was holding!”

Pete and Steve looked at each other. “What she was holding?” Steve clarified.

“Yes! I didn’t see what it was!” The woman was clearly too upset to continue. Pete helped her up and out of the office. Steve still sat, thinking. She wasn’t holding anything in the photos, so what did Maria mean?

“She wasn’t holding anything in the pictures in the file.” Pete said, echoing Steve’s thoughts. “So what does that mean, someone took something?”

“I mean, it makes sense that she was holding something. It would explain the outstretched arm,” Steve replied.

“Wait, Jinksy, so it’s not contagious!” Pete exclaimed, clearly being hit with some sort of epiphany. His eyes lit up, Steve thought, he really does look cute when he’s excited.

“What are you thinking?”

“Okay, so Hannah goes hiking and finds the artifact. She brings it back to the hotel and gets whammied somehow. A couple days pass and her body is found by Maria, who screams and brings in other housekeepers. Our housekeeper, Chloe, is one of them, and when she comes in she sees the artifact and grabs it, whammying herself.” At this point Pete was pacing in the small office, excitedly. “She takes it home, and her neighbor, Ms. Georgiou, goes over to visit and finds her body. She probably got whammied and didn’t call emergency services, leaving the body for Chloe’s daughter to find!”

Steve stood up. “I mean, it makes sense, but where’s the artifact now?”

Pete stood for a second, stumped. “Well, who would have found her body?”

“Pete,” Steve said, realizing, “Her boss called emergency services. The EMTs. They would have found her first.”

Pete looked grim. “We need to get in contact with emergency services and find out who responded to that call.”


	4. Chapter 4

Steve got out of the taxi. “Is this where he lives?”

“Yuph,” Pete mumbled from the other side of the taxi. Steve looked back at him.

“Where and _when_ did you get that?” he asked Pete, who somehow again had a gyro in his hand. Pete shrugged innocently. Steve rolled his eyes and turned back to the house. “At least the local police were cooperative. Adrian was one of the EMTs who arrived at Ms. Georgiou’s. We need to talk to him, see if he saw our artifact.”

“Let’s go talk to him,” Pete said, and finished off his gyro with a couple quick bites. The two walked up to the front door and knocked. No answer. “Adrian?” Pete yelled. “We’re with the American Secret Service, we just have a couple of quick questions.” Still no response, and Steve couldn’t hear anyone moving in the house. Pete messed with the handle a bit, checking to see if it was locked, which it was. He looked through the window, and gestured for Steve to go around the house.

Steve walked around the side of the house to the back. He found another door out back and tried it. Bingo. He walked into the house, and found himself in the kitchen. He walked through to the living room and to the front door, unlocking it for Pete.

“You see anything?” Pete asked, stepping into the house, his tesla drawn. Stupid, Steve thought, I should have pulled out mine right away. He whipped it out now, pretending it was intentional, but he still felt his face get red.

“Kitchen’s clear, so’s the living room.” Steve answered, still acting like he knew what he was doing.

“Maybe the bedroom?” They went back through the living room and headed down the hall. As they got close to one of the rooms, Steve could smell a strong smell. He looked and Pete, who nodded and got on the other side of the door. Steve opened it slowly, bracing himself for whatever the artifact might do.

Nothing seemed to be happening. Steve and Pete looked at each other and shrugged. They went into the room to find a man laying on the bed. He had his arm outstretched, and in his hand, was a mirror.

Steve walked closer to look at him. He didn’t see his chest rising. Was he dead?

Pete walked over to the other side of the bed. “Is this it?” He asked, reaching for the mirror.

“Pete!” Steve yelled. Pete stopped and looked at Steve. “Artifact, Pete. Gloves.”

“Right.” Pete said, holstering his tesla and reaching into his back pocket, pulling out a pair. Steve shook his head, and put on gloves himself. He felt the man’s wrist. Yup. Dead. This artifact was really racking up a body count.

“We’ll have to call emergency services and tell them about Adrian here.” Steve said, turning his attention back to Pete and the artifact.

Pete had pulled out a neutralizer bag and was holding the mirror by the handle. Steve could see the back of the mirror had an intricate floral design on it, although he couldn’t tell what kind from across the bed.

“Duck!” Pete yelled, dropping in the mirror while turning his head away. Steve flinched and…nothing.

“I mean, that had to be the artifact, right?” Steve asked, confused.

“Right! Maybe because he’s dead the artifact calmed down, you know, discharged”

Steve shrugged. “I guess that makes sense. Should we head back to the hotel?”

They got back to their hotel room and Steve used the bathroom. He was shocked by what he saw when he came out. Pete was lying on his bed, holding the mirror taken from the body of the EMT.

“Pete, what are you doing?” He said it calmly, but inside he was screaming. The artifact that had already killed 4 people was out in the open.

“I think my jawline is getting firmer, have you noticed it at all?” Pete asked, not breaking his gaze at his reflection.

“Pete, put the mirror down.”

“I don’t think so. I’m looking really good today. My skin is clear. And have you noticed my eye color? I look amazing.”

“Yeah, you look great Pete” Steve said. Fuck. Pete was whammied. Steve walked over to his suitcase and pulled out a fresh bag for the artifact. He slowly walked over to where Pete was admiring himself. He slipped the bag over the mirror carefully. Without even shifting his eyes, Pete grabbed the bag and whipped it off, crumpling it in his free hand.

“Why would you do that, Jinksy? I was looking at myself. I can do that every once in a while, can’t I? Look at myself? God knows you look at me enough”

Steve felt a rush of emotions. Embarrassment, anger, fear, he was feeling it all. He inadvertently took a couple steps back, and fell onto his bed. Pete noticed? How could he not, Steve thought, I’m looking at him every chance I get. Why wouldn’t he say anything? Pete sounded upset about it. But then why would he drop his towel? What was going to happen to their friendship?

“Focus” Steve said out loud. He needed to call in the big guns.

“Oh, I am focusing.” Pete said from the other bed. “Everyone should be focusing on this jawline.”

Steve shook his head and got up. He grabbed the Farnsworth and called in to the Warehouse.

“What’s wrong, Steve?” Artie said, answering.

“Pete’s been whammied.” Steve said, turning the Farnsworth so Artie could see.

“Fudge”

“No, we didn’t smell any.” Steve said, smiling, looking up at Pete, expecting him to laugh, and then remembering he was focused on that mirror.

“Steve, this isn’t the time for jokes, that artifact has killed.”

“You know what kills? This smile.” Pete said from the other bed.

“Okay, this is serious,” Artie said. He thought for a minute, and then yelled off screen, “MYKA!” Pete could hear footsteps rushing towards them. Myka must have been just outside Artie’s office, because she appeared quickly, pushing into the video frame.

“What’s wrong?” she said, sounding worried, “It’s Pete, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.” Steve spun the Farnsworth again so she could see him laying in the other bed. “He just started this.”

“Hey, is that Myka?” Pete asked, still not breaking eye contact with the mirror. “Get a close up with that thing, everyone should see me.”

“Okay, walk us through everything.” Myka and Artie listened intently as Steve recounted briefly the other victims, and what had happened at the house and now the hotel, leaving out Pete’s comment about Steve staring.

“Can you get closer the mirror?” Myka asked, “I want to get a closer look at the back.”

Steve walked over to the bed and positioned the Farnsworth above the mirror. “Is this a good angle?”

“Hmm, daffodils.” Myka mused quietly.

“What?” Steve and Artie asked at the same time.

“Give me a minute, I’m thinking”

“Even my thinking face is hot,” Pete chimed in. “It’s more of a ‘Blue Steel’ look.”

“That’s it!” Myka yelled. “He’s staring into that mirror admiring himself, he can’t look away.”

“We know that Myka,” Steve said.

“Let me finish. He’s staring into it. You’re in Greece. And the Daffodil is also know as the – “

“Narcissus flower, of course,” finished Artie. “In Greek mythology Narcissus was a young man who fell in love with his own reflection in a stream. He sat beside the stream staring at himself for so long he wasted away. Eventually, all that was left of him was a flower, a daffodil.”

“So where did this come from?” Steve was confused, and getting worried for Pete.

“It’s possible while the original victim was out hiking she came across a river or stream. Honestly any would do, Greek mythology is so engrained in the earth. If she sat and looked in it long enough it’s possible the water would have responded to her and manifested this artifact.”

“But that’s all just a myth.”

“Steve. You work in the warehouse. We literally have Zeus and Hera down here.” Myka said, sounding slightly annoyed.

“Right, right. I’ll never get used to that. So how do we stop it? Snagging and bagging isn’t an option, we tried. First, it didn’t do anything, and second, that’s probably when Pete first looked at it.” Myka and Artie didn’t say anything, both clearly deep in thought. “Hello? I need answers. Should I just break it?”

“NO,” Artie yelled, then gathered himself. “No, that doesn’t always work. It can break the artifact’s hold, but it could also trap him in this state. I know a particularly evil music box that left too much of itself in a young girl – “

“Okay, so no breaking it. What do we do?” Why did no one else seem to care about Pete except for Steve?

“It’s possible that the mirror is driven by the beholder’s love for themselves. We might be able to break its hold over Pete if we could find something he loves more than himself.”

“Pete’s going to be like this forever.” Myka said. Steve couldn’t help but agree, but then he had a thought.

“Gyros”

“What?” Now it was Myka and Artie talking at the same time.

“I mean, Pete loves food, right? And he’s been eating street gyros since we got here.” Now that he was saying it out loud, Steve felt ridiculous. “Never mind.”

“I mean, it’s worth a shot, right?” Myka looked at Artie, who shrugged.

“I’ll call you if it doesn’t work.” He shut the Farnsworth and grabbed the keycard. “I’ll be right back, Pete.”

“Hurry back, I need someone to admire this, and you’re my first choice.” Pete said, nonchalantly.

Steve froze. Pete wasn’t lying. But… No. It was the mirror. And Steve was the only one here, so he was Pete's only choice, right? He shook his head and headed out to the hall and ran to the elevator. He pressed for the ground floor and started slamming the buttons. He needed to hurry. He got to the lobby and ran out the doors. He looked around wildly. How did Pete find somewhere so fast?

It took two blocks before he finally found a stand, and he ordered a gyro. A second one was almost needed, as he was in such a rush he almost dropped the one he had. Pete needed this gyro, he couldn’t lose it.

Pete was still laying on the bed when he got back. He immediately ran to him, and shoved the gyro in between the mirror and Pete’s face. 

Pete smacked it out of his hand.

Covered in lamb and sauce, Steve felt hopeless. He had no other ideas. No. He had one other option. He took a deep breath, grabbed the top of the mirror, and pulled.

Pete was on him in an instant, growling like a wild animal. He went from laying in bed to standing in the blink of an eye, and tackled Steve. The two fell back onto Steve’s bed, and Steve could feel the mirror fly out of his hand.

The movement positioned Pete on top of Steve, their faces close. Which meant Steve could see the exact moment the fog in Pete’s vision cleared. Steve could hear the mirror shatter behind him.

“Steve?” Pete questioned.

“Pete?” Steve echoed.

Pete rolled off Steve, so both of them were laying on Steve’s bed, looking up at the ceiling.

“So… do you remember what happened?” Steve asked.

“Yeah, that was crazy. Suddenly all I wanted to do was look at myself. More than usual.”

“Pete.” Steve said. Then he hesitated. Should he say it?

“What’s up, Jinksy?”

“Pete. I saw your eyes.” Steve felt his stomach start to spin, like rollercoasters were suddenly running through it. “Pete, they cleared before the mirror shattered. They cleared when you looked at me.”

Pete didn’t say anything. He got up and took a few steps. “You saw wrong. It was the mirror breaking that fixed me.”

Steve felt his stomach drop. “Pete. I can tell you’re lying.”

Pete spun around, looking furious. “Don’t do that! Not for something like this.”

“Something like what?” That glare. Steve could feel tears in his eyes.

Pete kept his face angry for a second, but then dropped it. To Steve, he just looked sad. Pete sighed and then sat down on the end of his bed.

“Pete, you said things when you were under the effect of the mirror.” Steve said, gently. Pete didn’t respond. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Pete turned to look back at Steve. Steve was shocked to see tears in Pete’s eyes too.

“Steve, I… I don’t even know what I need to talk about.”

“Hey, Pete, it’s okay.” Steve got up and sat on the bed next to Pete. He put his hand on Pete’s thigh. He felt the same shock that he felt on the plane. “If you want to talk, I’m here for you, okay?”

Pete looked into Steve’s eyes, and Steve felt his body begin to vibrate from nervousness. Pete had to feel it too. “Steve, will you just. Lay with me for a bit?”

The butterflies in his stomach had turned to hummingbirds. “Yeah, Pete, I can do that.”

They shifted positions, so the two of them were laying side-by-side on Pete’s bed, looking up at the ceiling. They didn’t say anything for a long time. But eventually, Steve felt Pete’s hand find his, and grasp it tight.

Electricity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the wait! I'm getting a second degree and classes are starting up again, plus Korra was added to Netflix. But last night I got a burst and wrote it all!  
> I originally wanted to end it with them kissing and then maybe some other stuff but it didn't seem right when I got to that point. This seemed more gentle and correct. Sorry if you were expecting more! I was disappointed too! Lmao


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